Famous Men Archives - Page 8 of 9 - Barbara Lowell Children's Book Author

Books For Kids: Baseball

24 May 2016February 18, 2021

Who Is Derek Jeter?

By Gail Herman, Illustrated by Andrew Thomson

When Derek Jeter was eight years old, he announced that he was going to play baseball for the New York Yankees. Jeter earned the attention of major league scouts in high school and was drafted to the New York Yankees in 1992. Named Rookie of the Year, he helped the Yankees win the World Series five times, and became team captain in 2003. With his good looks, easygoing personality, and sense of humor, Derek has always been a fan favorite. Retiring from baseball in 2014, Derek Jeter leaves behind a legacy.

Becoming Babe Ruth

by Matt Tavares

Before he is known as the Babe, George Herman Ruth is just a boy who lives in Baltimore and gets into a lot of trouble. But when he turns seven, his father brings him to the gates of Saint Mary’s Industrial School for Boys. His life is changed forever.

At Saint Mary’s, he’s expected to study hard and follow a lot of rules. But there is one good thing about Saint Mary’s. Almost every day, George gets to play baseball. Under the watchful eye of Brother Matthias, George evolves as a player and as a man. And when he sets off into the wild world of big-league baseball, the school, the boys, and Brother Matthias are never far from his heart.

Out of the Ballpark

By Alex Rodriguez, Illustrated by Frank Morrison

Before he hit 400 home runs…
Before he was named
American League MVP…
Before he was AROD to
millions of fans…
He was Alex.

Just a kid who wanted to play baseball more than anything else in the world. Baseball superstar Alex Rodriguez has drawn on his own childhood experiences to create this exciting picture book. It’s the story of a boy named Alex who knows what it’s like to swing at a wild pitch or have a ball bounce right between his legs. Alex is determined not to let his mistakes set him back—even if it means getting up at the crack of dawn to work on his hitting and fielding before school each day!

Baseball’s Greatest Hitters From Ty Cobb to Miguel Cabrera

By S.A. Kramer, Illustrated by Jim Campbell

This Step into Reading Step 5 Sports Reader profiles the greatest hitters in baseball: Ted Williams, Babe Ruth, Ty Cobb, Hank Aaron. Now updated to include Miguel Cabrera, who made baseball history by achieving the Triple Crown in 2012, and up-and-comer Mike Trout. This star-studded survey remains contemporary by addressing the use of performance-enhancing drugs by some of baseball’s top stars.

We Are the Ship: The Story of Negro League Baseball

By Kadir Nelson

The story of Negro League baseball is the story of gifted athletes and determined owners, of racial discrimination and international sportsmanship, of fortunes won and lost; of triumphs and defeats on and off the field. It is a perfect mirror for the social and political history of black America in the first half of the twentieth century. But most of all, the story of the Negro Leagues is about hundreds of unsung heroes who overcame segregation, hatred, terrible conditions, and low pay to do one thing they loved more than anything else in the world: play ball.

Baseball Biographies for Kids: The Greatest Players from the 1960s to Today

By Dean Burrell

It’s the bottom of the ninth, bases are loaded, and your team is down by three―who do you want coming up to bat? Baseball Biographies for Kids answers this question and more!

Bursting with statistics and impressive feats from the greatest players of the last 60 years, this lineup of inspirational baseball biographies shows you what it takes to be a real MVP. Discover the ultimate dream team as you explore the best pros for each position. You’ll also get quick looks into some truly legendary baseball players and lots of fun facts!

Roberto Clemente: Pride of the Pittsburgh Pirates

by Jonah Winter, Illustrated by Raul Colon

On an island called Puerto Rico, there lived a little boy who wanted only to play baseball. Although he had no money, Roberto Clemente practiced and practiced until–eventually–he made it to the Major Leagues. America!

As a right-fielder for the Pittsburgh Pirates, he fought tough opponents–and even tougher racism–but with his unreal catches and swift feet, he earned his nickname, “The Great One.” He led the Pirates to two World Series, hit 3,000 hits, and was the first Latino to be inducted into the Hall of Fame. But it wasn’t just baseball that made Clemente legendary–he was also a humanitarian dedicated to improving the lives of others.

Campy: The Story of Roy Campanella

by David A. Adler, Illustrated by Gordon C. James

Roy Campanella loved baseball. A professional player from the age of fifteen, he later became the first African-American catcher to integrate Major League Baseball. Fans and players adored Campy for his good nature, and cheered his multiple MVP awards as a Brooklyn Dodger. But in 1958, his career ended when a car accident left him a quadriplegic. Refusing to give in to self-pity, Campy became a Dodgers coach, held baseball clinics for teenagers, and bravely advocated for the disabled.

You Never Heard of Sandy Koufax?

by Jonah Winter, Illustrated by Andre Carrilho

An old-timer tells us what made Sandy Koufax such an amazing baseball player. We learn that the beginning of his career with the Brooklyn Dodgers was rocky, that he was shy with his teammates, and experienced discrimination as one of the only Jews in the game.

We hear that he actually quit, only to return the next season—different—firing one rocket after another over the plate. We watch him refuse to play in the 1965 World Series because it is a Jewish high holy day. And we see him in pain because of an overused left arm, eventually retiring at the peak of his career. Finally, we are told that people are still “scratchin’ their heads over Sandy,” who remains a modest hero and a mystery to this day.

Baseball’s Best

By Andrew Gutelle, Illustrated by Cliff Spohn

Babe Ruth, Joe DiMaggio, Jackie Robinson, Roberto Clemente, and Hank Aaron—five amazing baseball legends. From the first black man to play major-league ball to the longest hitting streak ever, these are some of the game’s most inspiring stories. Find out what unforgettable feats won each player a place in the Baseball Hall of Fame.

My Little Golden Book About Jackie Robinson

By Frank Berrios, Illustrated by Betsy Bauer

This Little Golden Book captures the essence of Jackie Robinson for the littlest readers. Lively text and compelling artwork detail Robinson’s remarkable journey from childhood, to playing for the Negro Leagues, to then becoming the first African American to play in Major League Baseball in the modern era. Little ones will be inspired by the many challenges Robinson gracefully rose to, while they learn important baseball and civil rights history.

Lou Gehrig: The Luckiest Man

by David A. Adler, Illustrated by Terry Widener

Lou Gehrig’s perseverance is legendary. During fourteen years as a first baseman for the New York Yankees, he played in a record 2,130 consecutive games, earning himself the nickname Iron Horse. Lou loved baseball and considered himself a very lucky man, even though on his thirty-sixth birthday he was diagnosed with a fatal disease.

Satchel Paige

by Lesa Cline-Ransome, Illustrated by James E. Ransome

No one pitched like Leroy “Satchel” Paige. Fans packed the stands to see how many batters he could strike out in one game. He dazzled them with his unique pitching style, and he even gave nicknames to some of his trademark pitches — there was the “hesitation,” his magic slow ball, and the “bee ball,” named because it would always “be” where he wanted it to be.

Follow Satch’s career as he begins playing in the semipros and goes on to become the first African American to pitch in a major League World Series, and the first Negro Leaguer to be inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame.

Teammates

by Peter Golenbock, Illustrated by Paul Bacon

The story of how Jackie Robinson became the first black player on a Major League baseball team when he joined the Brooklyn Dodgers in the 1940s, and how on a fateful day in Cincinnati, Pee Wee Reese took a stand and declared Jackie his teammate.

You Never Heard of Willie Mays?

by Jonah Winter, Illustrated by Terry Widener

Many believe baseball great Willie Mays to be the best player that ever lived. He hit 660 home runs (fourth best of all time), had a lifetime batting average of .302, and is second only to Babe Ruth on The Sporting News‘s list of “Baseball’s 100 Greatest Players.”

The Streak: How Joe DiMaggio Became America’s Hero

by Barb Rosenstock, Illustrated by Terry Widener

In the summer of 1941, Yankee center fielder Joe DiMaggio and his favorite bat, Betsy Ann, begin the longest hitting streak in baseball history. But when Betsy Ann goes missing, will DiMaggio keep hitting? Set on the brink of World War II, this is a spellbinding account of a sports story that united the country and made DiMaggio a hero, at a time when one was profoundly needed.

The book descriptions used are primarily from the publishers.

If you like this post, then please consider sharing it and leaving a comment below. Thank you! Barbara Lowell, Children’s Author

You may like: Kids Books Girls Playing Baseball https://barbaralowell.com/kids-books-girls-playing-baseball

Books For Kids Jackie Robinson https://barbaralowell.com/books-for-kids-jackie-robinson

Filippo Brunelleschi, Pippo the Fool

19 May 2016August 21, 2019

Author Tracey E. Fern climbed the 463 steps to the top of the Duomo in Florence, Italy. She “wondered how such an enormous structure could have been built in the fifteenth century.”

Researching the Duomo, she found Filippo Brunelleschi. She wrote Pippo The Fool, about how Filippo, considered a fool, constructed a masterpiece.

The Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore/The Duomo

Filippo, an architect without formal training, entered a competition that changed his life and that of the city of Florence forever. In 1418, the Florence wool merchant’s guild decided to solve a problem. The Duomo’s construction begun in 1296, had never been finished. No one knew how to construct a dome without buttresses and Gothic arches for support. In Florence, both were thought to be undesirable. The existing walls also required an octagonal shape. How could a stable eight-sided dome be built?

Filippo Brunelleschi

The guild held a competition for architects with the winner building the dome. Filippo Brunelleschi’s idea seemed the most promising. He designed an interior and an exterior dome. With this design, expensive wooden scaffolds would not be needed. But Filippo would not tell anyone how he would construct the dome. He thought his idea would be stolen. Filippo seemed both stubborn and foolish — Pippo the Fool.

The people in charge of the project hired Filippo. But they required that well-known architect, Lorenzo Ghiberti, to work on the project with him. Lorenzo had lost to Filippo in the competition. Now Filippo was forced to work with Lorenzo.

It was Filippo, without any help from Lorenzo, who constructed the dome. He invented complex machines that lifted heavy sandstone beams and over four million bricks above the Cathedral. These machines were unique. According to National Geographic, “…they weren’t rivaled until the industrial revolution.”

Filippo designed the dome’s brickwork in a herringbone pattern. This added stability. And his design used a lighter interior and exterior two-dome design. This worked where a heavier single-dome design might have failed.

Completed in sixteen years, the dome is a testament to the genius of Filippo Brunelleschi.

If you like this post, then please consider sharing it and leaving a comment below. Thank you! Barbara Lowell, Children’s Author

You may like: Books For Kids: Inventors https://barbaralowell.com/books-for-kids-inventors

How was the dome constructed? Learn how in this National Geographic video.

Statue of Filippo Brunelleschi Gazing Up At His Dome

Michelangelo’s Statue Of David

6 April 2016January 25, 2023

Michelangelo’s David didn’t happen the way you might think. The marble wasn’t a lovely block recently cut from the quarry. And it wasn’t presented to Michelangelo to sculpt into a masterpiece.

Instead, the giant marble block had been worked on before by two sculptors. Both rejected it. They thought it was too imperfect a piece to sculpt into a stable statue. One or both had also damaged the piece. Even the great Leonardo Da Vinci refused to work on it.

For twenty-five years it lay untouched in the Opera del Duomo’s courtyard in Florence. In 1501, Michelangelo was asked to turn the marble into a statue of the biblical figure David. At 26 years old, he was already a master artist and sculptor.

Michelangelo Bounarroti

Michelangelo agreed, believing that he could sculpt David from the rough marble. He worked on the statue privately at his workshop hiding it from view. He chipped away for over two years, often with little sleep, focusing solely on his work. Michelangelo successfully transformed the enormous marble block into a work of art. It stands 17 feet tall.

Florence, Italy

In January 1504, he presented his statue to the board members of the Cathedral of Florence. They had commissioned the statue to be placed along the Cathedral’s roofline with other statues. But when they saw Michelangelo’s David they knew it belonged in a prominent place in Florence — one where everyone could see it. The Piazza deel Signoria, Florence’s seat of government was chosen as the site.

In May 1504, forty men worked for four days to move David the half mile from Michelangelo’s workshop to its new home. A witness wrote:

“It was midnight, May 14th, and the Giant was taken out of the workshop. They even had to tear down the archway, so huge he was. Forty men were pushing the large wooden cart where David stood protected by ropes, sliding it through town on trunks. The Giant eventually got to Signoria Square on June 8th 1504, where it was installed next to the entrance to the Palazzo Vecchio, replacing Donatello’s bronze sculpture of Judith and Holofernes”. — From the Galleria dell’ Accademia (Accademia Galley) website at: https://accademia.org

The statue of David became a symbol of freedom for the people of Florence. It warned others that Florence would defend itself just as David had defended the Israelites.

David at the Accademia Gallery

In 1873, David was moved into the Galleria dell’ Accademia, or Accademia Gallery, to protect it from additional weathering and damage. It stands there today, a magnificent testament to the genius and skill of its sculptor, Michelangelo Buonarroti.

If you like this post, then please consider sharing it and leaving a comment below. Thank you! Barbara Lowell, Children’s Author

You may like: Filippo Brunelleschi, Pippo the Fool https://barbaralowell.com/filippo-brunelleschi-pippo-fool

Books For Kids: Artists https://barbaralowell.com/books-for-kids-artists

A Book For Kids:

Stone Giant: Michelangelo’s David And How He Came To Be

by Jane Sutcliffe

Illustrated by John Shelley

The Pilot and the Little Prince

30 March 2016August 19, 2019

The Little Prince tells the story of a pilot who crash lands his plane in the Sahara Desert. He is awakened his first night there by a little prince fallen to earth from an asteroid. The novella is one of the most popular and endearing books since its publication in 1943. The author, Antoine De Saint-Exupery, a pilot, helped pioneer airmail delivery. And like the pilot in The Little Prince, he crash landed his plane in the Sahara desert, an experience that inspired his writing of The Little Prince.

Antoine, born in Lyon, France in 1900, grew up during the beginning of manned flight. Although the airplane originated in America with the Wright Brothers, it’s popularity took off in France. Antoine was there to see it. When he was twelve, he spent his summer days at an airfield watching pilots fly the early planes. One day, a pilot offered him a ride. And from then on, he dreamed of flying.

Antoine De Saint-Exupery

Entering military service with the French Army in 1921, Antoine took private flying lessons, and asked to be reassigned as a pilot with the French Air Force. After service, his flying career took off. He heard about an airline that flew mail delivery. Antoine signed up.

Antoine De Saint-Exupery

He flew and delivered the mail in Spain and West Africa. He later lived at Cape Juby, Morocco, in the Sahara Desert, working as a manager at the airfield. Antoine was a talented and courageous pilot who helped search and rescue downed pilots. At Cape Juby, he negotiated pilots’ release from captors.

Antoine De Saint-Exupery’s Crashed Plane, Sahara Desert, 1935

Antoine De Saint-Exupery wrote about his flying adventures in his books including, Night Flight and Wind, Sand and Stars. He will always be remembered for his masterpiece, The Little Prince.

In The Pilot and the Little Prince: The Life of Antoine De Saint-Exupery, master storyteller and illustrator, Peter Sis tells Antoine’s story from his childhood of “sunny days” to the day he went missing while flying for the Free French Air Force in World War II. The Pilot and the Little Prince is an engaging picture book biography for children.

The Pilot and the Little Prince: The Life of Antoine De Saint-Exupery

by Peter Sis

If you like this post, then please consider sharing it and leaving a comment below. Thank you! Barbara Lowell, Children’s Author

You may like: Elinor Smith Teenage Flying Flapper https://barbaralowell.com/elinor-smith-teenage-flying-flapper/

Henri Matisse, The Boy Who Became A Painter

23 March 2016August 21, 2019

In 234 words, Patricia MacLachlan tells the story of how young Henri Matisse became the master painter of color and light and movement.

Growing up in gray northern France, near the border with Belgium, Henri’s mother Anna Heloise brightened his world with color. She painted porcelain plates with scenes of nature. The plates hung on the walls of their house along with vivid red rugs that also covered a dirt floor. And Henri watched the colors of his pigeon’s feathers shimmer — “iridescence” his mother told him.

In The Iridescence of Birds: A Book About Henri Matisse, Patricia MacLachlan draws a child in by using the second person point of view and asking “ if you” questions, until the child knows, that if you had grown up in Henri Matisse’s world, then you would become a painter, too.

The Iridescence of Birds: A Book About Henri Matisse

Back Cover Illustrated by Hadley Hooper

Henri Matisse

Henri Matisse attended law school, passed the bar exam, and with his father’s help found a position as a law clerk — although he did not enjoy practicing law. But everything changed when Henri became ill with appendicitis. While recovering, his mother gave him paints and supplies. It was then that Henri knew he would spend the rest of his life as an artist.

If you like this post, then please consider sharing it and/or leaving a comment below. Thank you! Barbara Lowell, Children’s Author

To Learn More Visit: http://www.henri-matisse.net/biography.html

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Jacques Cousteau

24 February 2016August 20, 2019

Jacques Cousteau, a man of many talents, was a scientist, inventor, naturalist, explorer, writer, and filmmaker. He had a profound sense of wonder and curiosity about the world. An expert on sea life, he championed its preservation.

When Jacques was a child in France, he loved movies. He saved his allowance and bought a movie camera. With it, he filmed his own movies. They starred his friends, family, and even himself. Later, Jacques served in the French Navy. With his camera along, he traveled the world filming everything he saw.

In 1936, a friend gave Jacques a pair of swim goggles. Jacques swam underwater with them. For the first time he saw brilliantly colored fish and fascinating underwater plants and animals. But he could only stay underwater for a brief time. He wanted the ability to breathe and explore freely.

Jacques worked with an engineer and in 1943, he invented Scuba — Self-Contained Underwater Breathing Apparatus. Now he could breathe underwater like a fish. With his camera protected by a waterproof case he filmed the underwater world.

Jacques converted a former Navy mine-sweeper into an ocean going laboratory. He named his ship Calypso. Jacques traveled the world exploring and filming underwater. He captured sea life in over 115 films and in 50 books. He shared his adventures with people everywhere.

To learn more, visit: The Cousteau Society at: https://www.cousteau.org/english/

If you like this article, then please consider sharing it and leaving a comment below. Thank you! Barbara Lowell, Children’s Author

You may like Jane Goodall https://barbaralowell.com/jane-goodall

Books For Kids:

Manfish: A Story of Jacques Cousteau

by Jennifer Berne, Illustrated by Eric Puybaret

The Fantastic Undersea Life of Jacques Cousteau

by Dan Yaccarino

Carl Sagan’s Stars

10 February 2016February 2, 2023

Young Carl Sagan looked up at the night sky and wondered, “What are stars?” A question he seemed to ask over and over.

His mother took him to the library for the answer. At first, the librarian misunderstood Carl and gave him a book about the stars in Hollywood. But when he finally had the right book in his hands, it was magic. Carl learned that our Sun is a star. And all stars are suns, but they are so far away that they look like little points of light.

Carl searched the night sky for the planets in our solar system. He wished that he could walk on the surface of Mars, like his hero, John Carter, in the books by Edgar Rice Burroughs. And Carl wondered: did life exist outside our solar system? In our galaxy? In other galaxies?

Mars — The Red Planet

When Carl was four years old, his parents took him to the 1939 New York World’s Fair, not far from his Bensonhurst, Brooklyn home. There Carl saw wonders of the future: a mechanical man, a moving map, and even an early television. The possibilities for science and technology seemed endless to him.

The interior of an early television at the 1939 World’s Fair

When Carl grew up, he never stopped asking questions about space and its mysteries. He became a scientist with a PhD. in astronomy and astrophysics. He participated in the Voyager program that sent two unmanned spacecrafts on a journey to distant parts of our solar system. Voyager I and Voyager II sent back pictures and information to Earth that helped us learn more about the planets in our solar system.

Carl Sagan

Carl Sagan taught us about space with his many books and his PBS television series, Cosmos: A Personal Voyage. He told us that, “The total number of stars in the Universe is larger than all the grains of sand on all the beaches of the planet Earth.” This vastness inspired Carl’s curiosity as a child about planets and stars and galaxies that he later shared with all of us.

A wonderful book for children: Star Stuff: Carl Sagan and the Mysteries of the Cosmos by Stephanie Roth Sisson tells the story of Carl Sagan full of curiosity and wonder who reached for the stars.

If you like this post, then please consider sharing it and leaving a comment. Thank you! Barbara Lowell, Children’s Author

To Learn More: https://kids.kiddle.co/Carl_Sagan

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Jane Goodall https://barbaralowell.com/jane-goodall

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Mahalia Jackson Her Words Changed History

3 February 2016August 19, 2019

On an August day in 1963, under the shadow of the Lincoln Memorial gospel singer Mahalia Jackson told Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. to “Tell them about the dream Martin. Tell them about the dream.”

Mahalia Jackson Sings At The March On Washington

Mahalia Jackson was a close friend of Dr. King and an important voice for the Civil Rights Movement. Dr. King had spoken to Mahalia about his dream that all Americans would someday be judged by their character and not the color of their skin. On August 28, 1963, at the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, Mahalia sang the spiritual, “I Been ‘Buked and I Been Scorned,” a favorite of Dr. King. When she had finished, Dr. King spoke.

Dr. King Speaking Before A Crowd

Dr. King read from the speech he had prepared with the help of speech writer Clarence B. Jones. At about eleven minutes into his speech, Mahalia asked him to tell the people about his dream for America, the one she remembered hearing. Dr. King stopped reading, paused for awhile, and then spoke the words we know as his “I Have A Dream” speech — one of the most powerful and influential speeches in American history.

In their book, Martin & Mahalia: His Words, Her Song, Andrea Davis Pinkney and Brian Pinkey tell the story of how Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and Mahalia Jackson’s friendship changed the course of history.

If you like this post, then please consider sharing it and leaving a comment below. Thank you! Barbara Lowell, Children’s Author

You may like:

Marian Anderson Let Freedom Sing: https://barbaralowell.com/marian-anderson-let-freedom-sing

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Books For Kids: March on Washington https://barbaralowell.com/books-for-kids-march-on-washington

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Listen to Dr. King speak at the March on Washington. At about 12:00 minutes into the video, you will hear a long pause and then Dr. King will begin the “I Have A Dream” portion of his speech.

Galileo vs. Aristotle

27 January 2016August 19, 2019

Galileo Galilei, lived in Pisa home of the tall leaning tower — just right for an experiment challenging Greek philosopher Aristotle.

View of Pisa from the Leaning Tower of Pisa

Aristotle said that a heavier object falling from the same height, at the same time, would travel faster than a lighter object. Galileo disagreed. He said both objects would reach the ground about the same time.

It is said that at the top of the tower, Galileo dropped two spherical objects, one heavier than the other, perhaps a cannonball and a musketball. Both hit the ground at about the same time, disproving Aristotle’s law of gravity. Whether this actually occurred, or it was instead a thought experiment, Galileo wrote about it in his book, On Motion.

The Leaning Tower of Pisa

In Pisa, disproving Aristotle did not win fans for Galileo, and he was no longer asked to teach at the university there. But he wasn’t done challenging Aristotle. This time the challenge took place in the sky above.

The Dutch invented a telescope that made faraway objects appear closer. Galileo knew he could improve the Dutch telescope. When he did, he discovered that he could see the actual surface of the moon. It was not at all as Aristotle described it — completely smooth. Instead, the surface had peaks and valleys.

Galileo and his telescope

With his telescope, he also discovered the largest of Jupiter’s four moons. He published his discoveries in his book, Starry Messenger. Europeans learned about Earth’s moon and Jupiter’s moon, and Galileo became famous. He was invited by the Grand Duke of Tuscany to live in Florence and spend his days searching the sky for new discoveries.

What he discovered again challenged Aristotle. Aristotle said that our solar system was Earth centered. The sun and other planets revolved around the Earth.

What Galileo observed through his telescope made him realize that Aristotle was wrong. The sun was at the center of our solar system and the earth, like the other planets, revolved around it.

Unfortunately, disputing Aristotle again won him no fans. And finally landed him under house arrest for the rest of his life. But later scientists proved him right, the sun is the center of our solar system.

When I visited the Leaning Tower of Pisa, I was amazed that I had no sensation of leaning once inside the tower. Even at the top, it felt as if the tower stood perfectly straight.

If you like this post, then please consider sharing it and leaving a comment below. Thank you! Barbara Lowell, Children’s Author

You may like: Books For Kids: Galileo https://barbaralowell.com/books-for-kids-galileo

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Leonardo Da Vinci Invented https://barbaralowell.com/leonardo-da-vinci-invented

Teddy Roosevelt’s Christmas Surprise

15 December 2015January 24, 2023

President Teddy Roosevelt, his wife Edith, and their six children celebrated their second Christmas morning in the White House. They opened stockings filled with presents. But no presents were tucked underneath a big, sparkling Christmas tree. There were no Christmas trees in the White House, or so the president thought.

The president’s eight-year-old son Archie had other ideas. He brought a small tree into the White House. He decorated it with presents and hid it in a closet. Archie revealed his big surprise on Christmas morning.

Archie Roosevelt and his pony Algonquin

The president tells the story in a letter to a friend dated December 26, 1902:

“…Yesterday morning at a quarter of seven all the children were up and dressed and began to hammer at the door of their mother’s and my room, in which their six stockings… were hanging from the fireplace. So their mother and I got up, shut the window, lit the fire taking down the stockings of course, put on our wrappers and prepared to admit the children.

But first there was a surprise for me, also for their good mother, for Archie had a little birthday tree of his own which he had rigged up with the help of one of the carpenters in a big closet; and we all had to look at the tree and each of us got a present off of it. There was also one present each for Jack the dog, Tom Quartz the kitten, and Algonquin the pony, whom Archie would no more think of neglecting that I would neglect his brothers and sisters. Then all the children came into our bed and opened their stockings.”

Author Gary Hines imagines the story in full detail in his book, A Christmas Tree in the White House. Archie enlists his younger brother Quentin’s help and the two raise the tree tied to a bed sheet to the second floor. Does the president know?

Theodore Roosevelt with Archie and Quentin

If you like this article, then please consider sharing it and leaving a comment below. Thank you! Barbara Lowell, Children’s Author

The Teddy Roosevelt Family, https://www.whitehousehistory.org/photos/the-theodore-roosevelt-family

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